Teaching engineering ethics

Main points from previous lecture

• Professional ethics is a society (cultural)
related issue
• As time went on, engineers learned to move
from confronting “mother nature” to living in
harmony with the environment

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HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

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 Historical
• As a discipline, Engineering ethics is still young, certainly
younger than medical ethics (Hippocratic Oath) and legal
ethics.
– WHY?
– Emphasis has usually been upon products and their effects on society
rather than upon the human drama behind their production (No
attention was paid to the engineers as humans)
• Only since 1970s has systematic attention been devoted to it
by engineers and members of several other scholarly
disciplines.
• Engineering ethics became an “interdisciplinary discipline”
involving philosophy, social science, law, and business theory,
in addition to engineering theory.

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The Greek physician
Hippocrates (460–
370 BC)

Hippocratic Oath
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 Historical (Cont.)
• 1758 B.C., Babylon’s Building Code

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 Historical (Cont.)
• 1838, the US steamboat Code:
– Provided for the inspection of the safety features of
ships and their boilers and engines.

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 Historical (Cont.)
• Beginning with the Boston Society of Civil
Engineers in 1848, various engineering
organizations were founded including the
Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers or
IEEE in 1884, the American Association of
Engineers in 1915, and the National Society of
Professional Engineers or NSPE in 1934.
• In the early 20th century, many engineering
organizations started developing codes of ethics
for their members.

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TEACHING ENGINEERING
ETHICS

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 Teaching engineering ethics
• Since the late 1970’s, ethics has been
increasingly emphasized in engineering
curricula.
• Many programs have introduced elective
courses in engineering ethics
• Other programs have incorporated modules on
engineering ethics in professional ethics
courses or included them in technology and
society courses.

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 Teaching professional ethics (Cont.)
• Traditional
approaches:
(1) Teaching
engineering ethics on
the basis of moral
theories, concepts for
professional ethical
behavior, and codes
of ethics
• Our course
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 Teaching professional ethics (Cont.)
• Traditional approaches
(Cont.):
(2) Case-based approach views
engineering ethics as
encompassing the more general
definition of ethics, but
applying it more specifically to
situations involving engineers
in their professional lives.
• Your term paper
(3) Solving ethics problems by
using hypothetical cases and
problem solving tools to create
what might be called ethics
construction kits.
• Sometimes, can be covered in
term papers
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 Teaching professional ethics (Cont.)
• Traditional approaches (Cont.):
(4) Linking ethical instruction with engineering
practice
• Best approach but needs involvement of all lecturers,
not just the ethics lecturer!
• Still, you can discuss it in your technical courses

• Name one subject in your program which

may be related to engineering ethics

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 Teaching professional ethics (Cont.)
Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) accreditation
criteria (2019-2020 Criteria for Accrediting Engineering Programs)
• An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet
specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as
well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors
• An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences
• An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in
engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must
consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic,
environmental, and societal contexts
• An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together
provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment,
establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives
• An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using
appropriate learning strategies.

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 Teaching professional ethics (Cont.)
• According to a “Survey of Ethics-Related
Instruction in U.S. Engineering Programs”
[1999]:
– Only 27% of ABET-accredited institutions listed
an ethics related course requirement
– Different faculty have provided varying definitions
for what “understanding ethical and professional
responsibilities” means
• Need for shared concepts and ideas

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 Teaching professional ethics (Cont.)

However, things
are changing

US, 2001

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 Humanitarian Engineering
• The application of engineering to improving the well-
being of marginalized people and disadvantaged
communities, usually in the developing world.
• Humanitarian engineering typically focuses on
programs that are affordable, sustainable, and based
on local resources.
• Projects are typically community-driven and cross-
disciplinary, and they focus on finding simple solutions
to basic needs (such as close access to clean water;
adequate heat, shelter, and sanitation; and reliable
pathways to markets).
• https://www.britannica.com/topic/humanitarian-engineering

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 Corporate Social Responsibility
• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a
management concept whereby companies
integrate social and environmental concerns
in their business operations and interactions
with their stakeholders.

• Examples

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 Remember
• Unfortunately, there does not exist an ethics
rulebook with hard and fast "do’s and don'ts"
which engineers could be taught to follow.
• Instead, students need to learn to use
analytical tools and apply them to experiences
necessary for judging the appropriateness of
various actions and decisions in their
professional life.
– Will be clear when studying moral theorems

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 Points that
sparked your
attention!

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